Need a wine expert

[mattw]

Ok well maybe you don't have to be an expert, just have more knowledge than I do. A friend of mine gave me a bottle of wine as a gift and I know nothing about wine. I just drink Budweiser, when I want to feel sophisticated I might drink some New Castle. I know absolutely nothing about wine.

Please tell me something about this bottle I got, the label says:

RSV 1999 No. 27218
Vineyard Reserve
Napa Valley
Merlot - Cabernet Sauvignon - Cabernet Franc

On the back label it says Robert Sinskey Vineyards, I guess thats what RSV is.

Any help with this is appreciated, thanks.

[Laurent du Var]

First read up on the wine region :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napa_wine

The Napa Valley is an excellent wine region, and the three names you mentioned on the label :Merlot - Cabernet Sauvignon - Cabernet Franc
are blended to produce a Bordeaux like wine which means it is rich and dark in color, coarse and full in flavor and around 13% in alcohol. 1999 is a very nice age for a wine like that. 
You could just drink it but I'd recommend that you'll have it to acompany
some nice red meat or roast duck or something heavy and rich in flavor.

You need a nice wine glass meaning with a stem and a wide opening.

Open the bottle, the cork in a bottle like this should be a real one since the newer plastic ones only last for about 6 years. Anyway bottles like this have a rather long cork so screw the wine opener all the way to the end so you won't break it while pulling it out. Pour the wine in your glass just about a quarter full,
The glass must be spotless, you then take it by the stem and hold it against a light source to see the color. You're supposed to appreciate the fine colour nobody is asking you the exposition of the winefiled and the exact number of grapes which were used and how many feet trampled on them.
Then you stick your nose into the glass as far as you can and smell and inhale
and be delighted about the aroma (bouquet) of your fine wine. Right after that you swirl the wine in the glass - this is supposed to enrichen the wine with oxygene so the taste comes out stronger when you finally tak a sip which you'll eave a little while in your mouth before swalloing it.
And thats all there is to do.

(I f you find that over the top you may just offer it to somebody else who you would like to believe that you're a classy guy or you can also take a real large
glass and mix it with coca cola and enjoy it with your friend bubba from across the street on your front porch  )





 


 

[280plus]

LOL,,,when I was a kid we used to get wine mixed with coca cola at the big family dinners. I actually liked it. I can almost remember the taste.

On another note, I toured the Napa Valley extensively for a few succesive weekends, that was just around 30 years ago, sadly enough. I don't profess to be much of an expert, just a wino. 

I WILL say, there is a winery here in CT that grows and hand picks it's own grapes, which leaves out the stems, leaves and bugs. They produce one of the cleanest wines I have ever tasted. In addition to that the maker claims that here in CT all that evil acid rain causes the soil to be mildly acidic which eliminates the necessity of adding sulfites, as they do out in Napa.

http://www.ctwine.com/priam.html

[Laurent du Var]

LOL,,,when I was a kid we used to get wine mixed with coca cola at the big family dinners. I actually liked it. I can almost remember the taste.

On another note, I toured the Napa Valley extensively for a few succesive weekends, that was just around 30 years ago, sadly enough. I don't profess to be much of an expert, just a wino. 

I WILL say, there is a winery here in CT that grows and hand picks it's own grapes, which leaves out the stems, leaves and bugs. They produce one of the cleanest wines I have ever tasted. In addition to that the maker claims that here in CT all that evil acid rain causes the soil to be mildly acidic which eliminates the necessity of adding sulfites, as they do out in Napa.

http://www.ctwine.com/priam.html

When I was in the Army we drank white wine (Riesling) mixed with coke
out of pint glasses. 
You would have to torture me with wine from Chile before I'd that again.

"there is a winery here in CT that grows and hand picks it's own grapes, which leaves out the stems, leaves and bugs."
 
Maybe they should import Chinese  children to peel the grapes with their tiny little hands ?

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

there is a real wine expert at www.fredtalk.com  her handle there is hippydotmomn  she writes a wine column for the paper

[280plus]

Maybe they should import Chinese  children to peel the grapes with their tiny little hands ?

Good idea, then they can just collect their sweat and add to the wine too while they're at it. 

[Sergeant Bob]

Ok well maybe you don't have to be an expert, just have more knowledge than I do. A friend of mine gave me a bottle of wine as a gift and I know nothing about wine. I just drink Budweiser, when I want to feel sophisticated I might drink some New Castle. I know absolutely nothing about wine.

Any help with this is appreciated, thanks.

You don't need to talk to a wine expert, you need to talk to a beer expert!

[Laurent du Var]

there is a real wine expert at www.fredtalk.com  her handle there is hippydotmomn  she writes a wine column for the paper

What do you mean "real wine expert " ?
I drank way more wine than a woman from Friedrichsburg  could write about.
That makes me an expert, right ?

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

sorry  shes a sommolier

all the classes and ojt. women sommoliers are getting more common we had one at the mayflowerand if i remember right one took first a decade or 2 ago in the olympics

[Fly320s]

RSV 1999 No. 27218 Reserved.  A special mix or stock from that year.  Case or Lot number or Barrel.
Vineyard Reserve Marketing
Napa Valley Marketing, and true location of the vineyard or winery.
Merlot - Cabernet Sauvignon - Cabernet Franc As Laurent said, it's a blend of three grapes.

Don't worry about enjoying it with the right meal.  Just drink it with food you like.

Or, if you want to see how it pairs with different foods, drink it with a wide selection of fruits and cheeses that are at room temperature.  The different foods really make a difference.

[Balog]

Here's how I did it when I drank a lot of wine.

1) Go to Super Walmart and buy a 3 liter bottle for ~$7
2) Bring it home, unscrew the cap
3) Take drinking vessel (I preferred a large ceramic stein my brother got me for it's large capacity and handle) add a couple ice cubes
4) Pour wine, let it sit for a minute so the ice can work it's magic
5) Drink

[Laurent du Var]

Where did you take the ice cubes from under the bridge ?

[Balog]

Is that your way of implying I'm a troll Laurent, or of saying that I'm a hobo?

Hey, when your drinking wine of that quality a little ice helps. And it still tasted better than beer.

[The Viking]

I drink wine sometimes during festivals. Quite handy, and b-i-b-wine doesn't create as much of a mess as broken bottles...

[Laurent du Var]

But, but  - urgh - you're supposed to drink real expensive wine out of a 75 ml bottle which you need to open with a full crome 75 $  corkscrew from Ikea
so people can see that you relate style, taste and income.

You can't even spread your pinkyfinger if you need to hold
a ceramic steinkrug....

Seriously, mon ami  -
3 liters for 7 bucks that ought to get you blind in no time     

B-i-b wine on a festival, viking ? I don't even want to ask what that is,
roll your own joints for crying out loud you'll have plenty of time later on to regret it...

[280plus]

I recall a lovely French wine a friend of mine swore by, Partager, back then it was about $2.50 a liter or whatever. Believe it or not, it was corked.  I believe he personally kept the Partager company afloat.

[The Viking]

But, but  - urgh - you're supposed to drink real expensive wine out of a 75 ml bottle which you need to open with a full crome 75 $  corkscrew from Ikea
so people can see that you relate style, taste and income.

You can't even spread your pinkyfinger if you need to hold
a ceramic steinkrug....

Seriously, mon ami  -
3 liters for 7 bucks that ought to get you blind in no time     

B-i-b wine on a festival, viking ? I don't even want to ask what that is,
roll your own joints for crying out loud you'll have plenty of time later on to regret it...

Bag-in-box. I usually buy something cheap if I buy wine. I'm only getting drunk on it anyway. You'd be surprised as to how many people go to festivals here without a cork screw, screaming when they can't open that bottle... Fortunatly for them, I usually carry a Swiss army knife on me, if I can find it that is.

[RevDisk]

RSV 1999 No. 27218
Vineyard Reserve
Napa Valley
Merlot - Cabernet Sauvignon - Cabernet Franc

On the back label it says Robert Sinskey Vineyards, I guess thats what RSV is.

Any help with this is appreciated, thanks.

Merlot - Red wine, often characterized by a medium body with hints of berry, plum, and currant.  It tends to have a higher sugar and lower malic acid content.

Cabernet Sauvignon - Red wine, aromatic, good finish, higher in tannin which lacks richness (which is why it is blended with the merlot), much stronger flavor than merlot.  Aroma is often characterized by cedar and spice.  Often pepper and/or oak too.   BTW, also protects ya from Alzheimer's disease.

Cabernet Franc - Bright pale red, almost exclusively grown for blending with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. 


I've noticed lately a lot more blended wine.  This is a Bordeaux style blend.  Also called Meritage here in the States.  While not binding, wineries are not supposed to market more than 25,000 cases of any Meritage style wine per year.  Nor are they to use more than 90% of any single component.  A meritage is made up of two or more of the following: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Malbec.  Three wines is most common.  I try to avoid any blended wine that is three wines in exactly equal portions, except for an Argentine Mendoza.

This is just a suggestion, but I recommend serving it chilled.  Just toss it in the fridge for 24 hours before serving with a meal.  I'd call it more of a table wine (ie, with food) rather than a sipping wine (ie, socially).  If you're willing to be slightly more risky, put it in the freezer for 30 minutes prior to serving.  The risk is the bottle cracking. 

[Laurent du Var]

.  This is a Bordeaux style blend. 

This is just a suggestion, but I recommend serving it chilled. 
 
[/quote]

Would you mind telling me why you'd put a Bordeaux style wine in the fridge ?

[RevDisk]

.  This is a Bordeaux style blend. 

This is just a suggestion, but I recommend serving it chilled. 
 

Would you mind telling me why you'd put a Bordeaux style wine in the fridge ?

Because I have neither a cellar nor a proper wine cooler.  Yes, I realize I'm a little strange, but I prefer my Bordeaux chilled.  Not room temperature.

Moreso with light sweet white wines, I'm also experiment with flash freezing.  Has produced some interesting results.  Along with a couple of abominations.

[grampster]

An inexpensive bottle of wine is delightfully enhanced by adding a dollop or two of a nice brandy. 

We have the Leelenau Penninsula here in NW Michigan.  Some fine wines are produced up here.  The penninsula sticks out into Lake Michigan on the west and Grand Traverse Bay on the east.  It is high ground and the temperatures are regulated by the lake, so we produce some very nice grapes along with other fruit.

Leelanau Cellars is the best of the bunch.

[Bogie]

So, what do y'all think of Chuck?
 
Personally, I don't think I'll ever be a wine snob, but it's okay...

[doczinn]

I'm no wine snob, and I can't drink Chuck.

I spend typically 4-7 dollars for a bottle. I get some decent stuff in that range.

[Scout26]

I'm not familiar with that vineyard/bottler. (I prefer German wines, especially Rieslings.  Comes from having lived in Germany and taking more then one trip up and down the Deustche Weinstrasse  ).

My suggestion with wine is to try it.  If you like it, buy more.  If you don't like it, buy a different wine.

It's a blended wine, so it's probably a little sweeter then a Merlot or Cabernet Sauvigon, and marketed for a mass audience rather then the "wine snobs". 

Let us know what think of it.   I enjoy trying new wines (anything with a cork).  For inexpensive wines, Aldi has a some surprising good choices in both red and whites.

 

[mattw]

Thanks for all the great replies. A couple of you were even on topic! Rare for these boards.

So would this be a good wine to put in my closet for about 5 or 10 years and then drink it? Or is there a certain window of time where this would be at its best?

As I mentioned earlier, I'm a big domestic beer fan, I don't drink alot of wine and saving this stuff for later would not be a problem. I am also thinking about saving it just because it says 1999 on the bottle and when I'm like 60 years old (2046) people might be impressed by it.